Attorney General talks crime in Jacksonville

Published: Wednesday, May 1, 2013 at 07:28 AM.

“We had DNA matching the suspect who raped her with two other rapes,” Cooper said. “We just didn’t know who it belonged to.”

The suspect was eventually charged with a different crime and convicted at which time his DNA was taken and it was discovered he was the man who raped the jogger. The man had been arrested two months before that rape and had DNA been taken at that time, he would have been charged with the other rapes and would not have had the opportunity to rape the jogger, Cooper said.

“We’ve got to make sure we use technology to its fullest extent to protect the public,” he said.

Cooper has implemented a computer forensics unit to track the IP addresses of people who create and share child pornography. He said in one case state law enforcement officer was able to find a suspect who had been filming the abuse of an 11-year-old girl.

“He was able to tell that girl, ‘You don’t have to sleep with one eye open tonight,’” Cooper said.

The state has trained law enforcement, especially school resource officers, how to respond to mass shooting threats, Cooper said.

“The standard practice was to have the first police on the scene to cordon off the area, but with someone shooting people, you can’t do that,” he said. “The first officer on the scene needs to be able to handle the shooter. That means every officer has to be trained how to react.”

Technology has a major role in modern crime fighting, N.C. Attorney General Roy Cooper told the Jacksonville Kiwanis Club on Tuesday.

Attorney general since 2001, Cooper said he has worked to incorporate advanced technology including DNA matching, computer forensics and mass shooter training, into how law enforcement investigates and combats crime.

Speaking briefly before Cooper, Daily News Publisher Elliott Potter said he graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the same class as Cooper: 1979. Potter said he worked at the college newspaper and Cooper was student body president.

Potter said Cooper has been very effective as an attorney general and noted he was pleasantly surprised Cooper hasn’t used the office to run for governor.

“Folks have asked me to run for other offices,” Cooper said when he took the podium. He said he cropped tobacco as a child in NashCounty, which taught him three things: hard work, dedication and that he really wanted an air-conditioned job when he grew up.

He said the state collects DNA from every convicted felon, but he would like to extend that to anyone charged with a crime. He cited a Charlotte case in which a woman out for a jog was raped.

“We had DNA matching the suspect who raped her with two other rapes,” Cooper said. “We just didn’t know who it belonged to.”

The suspect was eventually charged with a different crime and convicted at which time his DNA was taken and it was discovered he was the man who raped the jogger. The man had been arrested two months before that rape and had DNA been taken at that time, he would have been charged with the other rapes and would not have had the opportunity to rape the jogger, Cooper said.

“We’ve got to make sure we use technology to its fullest extent to protect the public,” he said.

Cooper has implemented a computer forensics unit to track the IP addresses of people who create and share child pornography. He said in one case state law enforcement officer was able to find a suspect who had been filming the abuse of an 11-year-old girl.

“He was able to tell that girl, ‘You don’t have to sleep with one eye open tonight,’” Cooper said.

The state has trained law enforcement, especially school resource officers, how to respond to mass shooting threats, Cooper said.

“The standard practice was to have the first police on the scene to cordon off the area, but with someone shooting people, you can’t do that,” he said. “The first officer on the scene needs to be able to handle the shooter. That means every officer has to be trained how to react.”

When it comes to drug abuse in North Carolina, prescription pills are overtaking illicit narcotics. Cooper said the fact that the medication is so readily available leads many to have a false and deadly sense of security.

“The No. 1 cause of accidental death in the U.S. is prescription medication which is also involved in more than 25 percent of teenage suicides,” Cooper said.

Cooper suggested everyone lock up their medicine and bring unwanted or expired medications to the drug drop off box in the lobby of the Jacksonville Police Department.

“The best way to fight crime is to prevent it,” he said.

Cooper also warned against identity theft, suggesting residents take advantage of the May 18 Shred-a-Thon at the Jacksonville Mall where old documents like tax returns can be shredded for free. He also suggested a security freeze on credit checks to block a scam artist from opening a line of credit.

Cooper answered a few questions and offered a few parting shots of advice, including don’t buy anything unsolicited over the phone; don’t wire someone money unless you’re 100 percent sure it’s to the person you think it is and add home and cell numbers to the state’s don’t call lists. More information on those topics can be found at ncdoj.gov.

Contact Daily News Senior Reporter Lindell Kay at 910-219-8455 or lindell.kay@jdnews.com. Follow him on Twitter and friend him on Facebook @ 1lindell.